Blue Jays: An early guess at how the 26-man roster will look

While it still feels like the Blue Jays will add a piece or two, we’re starting to get a clear idea of what the 26-man roster could look like in 2021.

That’s not to suggest that there won’t be battles for jobs during Spring Training, but a lot of the roster could be in place already, at least on paper. Health and even spring performance will play a factor too of course, but I’d like to take a shot at predicting how the squad will look on Opening Day.

I’m going to write this as the roster is currently constructed, even though I believe they’ll add at least one more starting pitcher before the regular season gets underway. I also suspect that the front office will continue to pursue relief arms on low-cost/MiLB deals, and that they could even look for a veteran catcher to add to the depth chart. They brought back David Phelps this week, and claimed Joel Payamps from the Red Sox, which forced some other decisions with the 40-man roster as well.

It’s an exciting time for Blue Jays fans, as the team not only signed impact players like George Springer, Marcus Semien, Kirby Yates, and more, but they’ve also cut bait with a few assets that arguably needed to go, showing another level of commitment to winning this season. On paper, the group that Ross Atkins and company have put together looks very strong, even if they’re probably a piece or two away from a true championship contender.

Let’s have a look at where things stand with just four days until pitchers and catchers report.